How will the Digital Economy Bill impact UK businesses?
There is concern about the speed with which the Digital Economy Bill was passed through Parliament with a number of amendments made to simply allow the bill a clear passage. Many people are worried that those who initially implemented the bill do not have a full understanding of its potential implications which could quite literally see households and businesses blocked from internet access if they are accused of somehow being involved in copyright infringement or even illegal file downloading.
While the basics of the Digital Economy Bill are fairly straightforward and in many ways acceptable to the vast majority of people, it is the massive array of new powers which have been introduced that will allow the authorities to literally consider banning users from the Internet on the say-so of third parties which is a worry. There is also concern regarding the limited rights of appeal and the consequences this could have on simple basic human rights.
There is no doubt that the Internet is now a central part of everyday life for many people in the UK and around the world and there is a need to increase regulation of this enormous monster. Whether the Digital Economy Bill is a step too far remains to be seen but concerns have been aired and effectively ignored by the authorities.
Share this..
Related stories
Is Gordon Brown holed below the waterline?
Gordon Brown is this evening fighting for his political future after the revelation that Sir James Crosby, a man who Gordon Brown promoted to the position of deputy chairman of the FSA and installed as one of his close circle of economic advisers, may have fired a "whistleblower" during his time at HBOS when the employee suggested the bank was growing too quickly. Even though Sir James has taken s...
Read MoreSpain suffers cut from Standard and Poor's
Credit rating agency Standard and Poor's has today reduced the credit rating on Spanish national debt from AAA to AA. This is a major blow for the Spanish economy and the Spanish government and comes amid signs that the Greece debacle is now affecting other European economies. Yesterday we saw Portugal suffer the indignity of a credit rating downgrade and experts believe more downgrades are on the...
Read MoreConsumer Confidence Collapses Yet Further
While it looked as though the figure for consumer confidence in June could get no worse, the figure for July has shocked many in the markets. A GfP NOP survey has highlighted the fact that consumer confidence has fallen to -39 points for July, a fall of 5 points from the June figure. This is now the lowest figure since the dark days of 1974 and lower than the figure for March 1990 - the last maj...
Read MoreLondon named world city of commerce
London has been named as the world's leading commercial hub, overtaking New York as the premier financial centre.
New research from MasterCard Worldwide places the UK capital at the top of a list of the world's 50 most influential cities on the global economy.
The panel of leading economists that compiled today's index praised London's flexibility as an operating environment for...
Irish authorities furious with S&P
The Irish authorities have today reacted with fury in relation to the downgrading of Irish sovereign debt to an AA- credit rating by S&P. The authorities believe that the approach taken by S&P is fatally flawed and does not correspond with that taken by the IMF, Eurostat or the European Commission. This public criticism of S&P goes very much against the grain of the previous policy of the Irish au...
Read More